Electrical power distribution system and method thereof

ABSTRACT

A system for providing auxiliary electrical power is provided. The system includes a plurality of loads and a plurality of power sources, each providing electrical power to one or more of the plurality of loads. At least one generator is electrically connected to the plurality of loads. Also, a plurality of power converters, each of the plurality of power converters being electrically connected between the at least one generator and one of the plurality of loads. An arrangement is also provided for increasing the reliability of power to a load through a connection with a parallel utility network.

CROSS REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS

This application is a continuation of U.S. patent application Ser. No.10/950,943 filed on Sep. 27, 2004 which is incorporated by reference inits entirety.

FIELD OF INVENTION

This disclosure relates generally to a system for providing a combinedheat and power functionality to a facility and especially to a systemfor a facility having multiple utility services and a common electricalgeneration system in parallel with the utility services.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

A facility which uses a combined heat and power system (hereinafterreferred to as “CHP”), or cogeneration, uses a single process tosimultaneously produce both thermal energy and electrical power from asingle fuel source. A typical CHP system utilizes one or more primemovers, such as a diesel engine, to drive an electrical generator. Heatwhich results from the generation of electricity is reclaimed and thenused for other purposes such as community heating or industrialprocesses. Users of CHP systems can achieve dramatic increases in energyefficiency, in some cases doubling the efficiency of the system. CHPsystems also provide a means for providing auxiliary power to thefacility which they can use to support the facility in the event of apower failure.

Most facilities which utilize CHP also receive electrical power from autility company which transmits electrical power to end users throughdedicated utility grids from the point of production at large powerplants. Due to the long distances involved in the transmission of power,as well as unexpected increases in demands placed on the utility, endusers often face power quality and reliability issues. These powerquality issues range from conditions such as undervoltage (sags),voltage spikes, surges, overvoltage, and noise to complete powerfailure. When power quality and reliability are of great importance tothe end user, they often rely on uninterruptible power supplies (UPS) toprovide continuous power to meet the user's needs. UPS systems range insize and functionality, however most involve some type of energy storagedevice, such as a battery, which provides electricity through aninverter to power the load. In the event of a power grid interruption, aUPS will provide short duration conditioned power to the user throughthe energy storage device. In the event that the power outage last formore than several moments, some form of on-site generated power, such asa generator powered by a reciprocating engine, is engaged to provide theconditioned power before the stored energy is depleted.

Commonly, uninterrupted power involves the coupling of the UPS systemwith automatic transfer switches and other components including energystorage, power generation, power converters, switches, utilityinterfaces, and interfaces with the end user load. In facility's whichutilize multiple metered electric utility services from the utilitygrid, this complexity is multiplied since traditionally, each utilityfeed required its own dedicated UPS or CHP system. Since generationequipment is available in only discrete size ranges, the combining ofdevices often requires over sizing of equipment for any individualutility feed in the multi-utility service facility. The use of discreteUPS and CHP systems also results in substantial wiring between thecomponents, increasing the potential for incompatibilities and non-idealsystem performance.

While existing auxiliary power systems are suitable for their intendedpurposes, there still remains a need for improvements in providingauxiliary power to end users that allows them to achieve the levels ofpower quality, efficiency and reliability required for their loads. Inparticular, a need exists for a topology for an auxiliary power systemthat provides a single on-site generating asset and central heatrecovery system.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

The present invention provides a system for generating electrical powerin parallel with at least one utility to a facility having multipleloads with different electrical characteristics. The system furtherincludes multiple power converters that control flow of electrical powerto the loads and a method for reclaiming heat generated by theelectrical power production for use in the facility.

The above discussed and other features will be appreciated andunderstood by those skilled in the art from the following detaileddescription and drawings.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

Referring now to the drawings, which are meant to be exemplary and notlimiting, and wherein like elements are numbered alike:

FIG. 1 is a schematic illustration of a prior art facility having asingle auxiliary generator for each utility service.

FIG. 2 is a schematic illustration of the present invention utilizing asingle auxiliary generator to provide power to multiple independentloads.

FIG. 3 is a schematic illustration of another alternate embodimentutilizing a electrical distribution bus to provide auxiliary electricalpower throughout the facility.

FIG. 4 is a schematic illustration of an alternate embodiment in FIG. 3including a generator and a photovoltaic array arranged in parallel.

FIG. 5 is a schematic illustration of an alternate embodiment utilizinga separate utility service to provide auxiliary electrical power to aload on another utility service.

FIG. 6 is a schematic illustration of the alternate embodiment of FIG. 5having primary power supplied by two independent utility services.

FIG. 7 is a schematic illustration of an alternate embodiment powerconverter.

FIG. 8 is a schematic illustration of an alternate embodiment energystorage arrangement for increasing power quality at a load.

FIG. 9 is a schematic illustration of an alternate embodiment systemhaving loads connected to separate transformer secondaries.

DESCRIPTION OF PREFERRED EMBODIMENT

Traditionally, electrical power distribution and service was provided bya single utility which would provide all services required by a user,from the generation of the electricity, to the maintaining of theelectrical grid. As the electrical power industry was deregulated,complexities often arose as consumers were allowed to purchaseelectricity from multiple suppliers while at the same time, their powerneeds were increasing. As a result, in large facilities, it has becomecommon for multiple electrical service entrances to be connected to thefacility. Occasionally the facility will also be fed electricity fromdifferent utility suppliers as well. As used herein, a facility means asingle building, or a series of buildings such as a farm or office park,which are geographically located in close proximity to each other,typically being located less than five miles apart and preferably lessthan one mile apart.

A typical facility having multiple utility service entrances is shown inFIG. 1. Here, the facility 10 contains multiple independent loads 12,14, 16 being provided power from several utilities 18, 20. The utilitiesprovide power to a transformers 22, 24, 26 which adapt the utility powerto a form usable by the particular loads 12, 14, 16. It should beappreciated that each of the loads may have different electrical powerneeds, for example, load 12 may require 120V single phase power whileload 16 may need 480V three-phase power. After the electrical power istransformed, it passes through a meter 28 to the respective loads. Anoptional disconnect switch 30 is utilized in some applications toprevent flow of electricity back into the utility 18 in the event of autility power failure. Due to costs involved in maintaining, sizing andinstalling a generator to support the entire facility 10, it is oftendifficult to economically justify connecting loads, such as load 17, toan auxiliary distribution bus. Therefore, in the event of power qualityissues or power failure from the utility 20, the load 17 would not besupported. Additionally, even if the multiple electrical services havenominally the same electrical characteristics, due to power flow andprotection issues, a single generator may not be directly connected tothe multiple services.

Since reliability of electrical service is often critical to theoperation of a business, it is not uncommon for each of the loads 12,14, 16 to be connected to an auxiliary generators 32, 33, 34 to provideelectricity to the loads 12, 14, 16 and/or heat to the facility 10. Ingeneral, for CHP applications, a communications link 31 allows thegenerators 32 to synchronize with the utility 18, 20 and runcontinuously to provide electrical power and thermal energy to thefacility 10 without feeding power back onto the utility grid. In theevent that the the electrical demand for the facility 10 is less thanthe capacity of the generator 32, the generator is operated at reducedrate. In the event that primary power from the utility was lost,typically the generators 32 will be disabled to prevent flow ofelectrical power back into the utility 18, 20. Alternatively, where theoptional disconnect switch 30 is installed, the switch 30 would open,isolating the load 12, 14, 16 from the utilities 18, 20. The generators32, 33, 34 could then provide electrical power to the loads 12, 14, 16without danger of feeding electricity back onto the utility while theutility is being repaired. With the disconnect switch 30 installed, thesystem also operates to provide auxiliary or emergency backup power.

Since each of the loads 12, 14, 16 have different electrical sources 18,20, each load required the installation of a dedicated generator 32, 33,34 which was sized appropriately to meet the needs of the loads 12, 14,16. As generator systems are typically manufactured in a discrete powerranges, generators used in the auxiliary power systems were oftenoversized in order to guarantee that sufficient power was available tothe supported load. As a result, excess capacity was often installed inthe auxiliary power system which was not accessible by any loads otherthan the one which it was directly connected to. Additionally, the useof individual generators utilized space that could be used for othermore value-added business purposes.

The exemplary embodiment of the present invention is shown in FIG. 2. Inthis embodiment, the power system 40 utilizes a single power source orgenerator 42 to provide electrical power to multiple loads 12, 14, 16,17 via auxiliary electrical distribution bus 44. As will be described inmore detail herein, the electrical distribution bus 44 includes powerconversion devices 46, 48, 50, 51 that control the flow of power frompower source 42 to the multiple loads 12, 14, 16, and to load 17 whereit is typically not economically feasible to provide auxiliaryelectrical power. As will be made clearer herein, the use of the powerconverters 46, 48, 50, 51 allow the topology of the system 40 to berearranged in many different configurations and still be within thescope of the present invention provided that the configuration involvesthe use of a single electrical power generation source and powerconverters along with the utilities 18, 20 to provide power to multipleloads. It should be appreciated that this flexibility in thisarrangement will facilitate the connection of loads such as load 17connected to the auxiliary distribution bus 44 more cost effectivelythan provided hereto before. Also, as used herein, an electrical bus ornode may be any point, line, or continuous section of common interactionbetween any two or more of power sources and loads such that the point,line, or continuous section has a common set of electricalcharacteristics, specifically voltage and for AC systems frequency andphase as well.

The generator 42 may be any type of distributed power generation device,including but not limited to electrical generators powered byhydrocarbon fueled (i.e. diesel, gasoline, propane or natural gas)internal combustion engines, hydrogen internal combustion engines,external combustion engines, Stirling engines, microturbines, steamturbines, gas turbines, flywheels, wind turbines, photovoltaic arrays,batteries, fuel cells, capacitors, super-capacitors and ultracapacitors.An optional control system 45 in the generator 42 may be included tomonitor the operation of the generator 42 and alert the user in theevent of a fault condition.

In the preferred embodiment, the power system 40 also reclaims thethermal energy Q produced by the generator 42 to provide heat forindustrial processes or heating of the facility 10. The reclamation ofthermal energy may be accomplished by any typical means, preferablythrough heat exchange with the cooling system or exhaust of generator 42or through an absorption chiller. The thermal energy is typicallytransferred to the facility in the form of direct heat, hot water, orsteam for process heating and/or cooling. It should also be appreciatedthat while the generator 42 as used herein is referenced as a singular,it is within the scope of the present invention that the generator 42may be multiple power sources electrically coupled in parallel toprovide electrical power to the distribution bus 44.

Each of the power converters 46, 48, 50, 51 convert the AC powerprovided by the generator 42 to match the electrical characteristics ofthe load it is supplying. In the exemplary embodiment the powerconverters 46, 48, 50, 51 are similar to that described in U.S. Pat. No.6,693,409 entitled “Control system for a power converter and method ofcontrolling operation of a power converter” which is incorporated hereinby reference. The power converters 46, 48, 50, 51 may be of any typethat can manage electrical characteristics such as, but not limited to,AC frequency, phase or voltage on either side of the converter andcontrol the power flow at the same time. Preferably, the powerconverters 46, 48, 50, 51 will automatically and independently adjustthe electrical characteristics of the asynchronous electrical powerproduced by generator 42 to be compatible with the connected load andutility. In addition the power converters 46, 48, 50, 51 preferably cancontrol the reactive power on each side independently making possiblesome amount of voltage control on either side of the converter. Thisarrangement provides a number of advantages over the prior art systemsin that this embodiment allows the generator 42 to operate in variablespeed generator (“VSG”) mode to achieve improved performance andefficiency at partial loads. The VSG mode allows for operation duringstep changes in the load demand and the utilization of the rotationalinertia of the generator 42 in compensating for these step changes.Additionally, a single larger generator is often less costly to purchaseand maintain than multiple smaller dedicated generators and the heatsupply may be consolidated.

In a typical CHP application, the generator 42 will operate continuouslyto provide thermal energy and power to the facility 10 in parallel withthe utilities 18, 20. Using a power converter such as that described inthe aforementioned '409 patent in the system 40, the generator 42 can beoperating continuously with the power converter providing electricalpower to the loads automatically on an as needed basis. Thisconfiguration provides additional power quality protection for the loads12, 14, 16, 17 against electrical faults on the utility 18, 20 such aslow voltage conditions or so-called “brown-outs”.

An alternate power converter arrangement is shown in FIG. 7. In someapplications, it may be more cost effective to utilize two powerconverters instead of a single direct AC-AC power converter. Here, therepower converter 100 is includes a first power converter 102 whichconverts the AC electrical power transmitted over the auxiliarydistribution bus 44 from AC to DC. The DC electrical power istransmitted to a second converter 104 which converts the DC electricalpower back into AC electrical power before being transmitted to the load12. While this configuration may result in more components, it may allowfor the use of lower cost converters in some applications. Additionally,it should be appreciated that while the power converters are shown astwo separate components, it is contemplated that this conversion processmay incorporate these converters into a single device which includes theintermediate DC stage of conversion.

An alternate transformer arrangement is shown in FIG. 9. In thisembodiment, the transformer 110 has a single primary winding 110 a whichis connected to the utility 18. The transformer 110 also has twosecondary windings 110 b, 110 c which provide electrical power to thefacility's 10 two loads 12, 14 respectively. It should be appreciatedthat even though the loads 12, 14 are receiving electrical power fromthe same transformer 110 primary 110 a, differences in the secondarywindings 110 b, 110 c and the impedances of loads 12, 14 result insufficiently different electrical characteristics that make itimpracticable to directly connect the loads 12, 14 to the same generator32 without using the power converters 46, 48 as provided herein.

An optional energy storage 43 may be coupled to the distribution bus 44to provide additional power quality control as shown in FIG. 3. If thepower system 40 is used in an auxiliary or back-up power application,the energy storage 43 could be used to provide electrical power to thedistribution bus 44 while the generator 32 is initiated and acceleratedto operational speed. The energy storage 43 may be any type of energystorage device such as, but not limited to, fly wheels, batteries,capacitors, super-capacitors and ultracapacitors. If the energy storage43 produces electrical energy in direct current (DC) form, a powerconversion device, or inverter 47 must also be used. It should beappreciated that the embodiments described herein are exemplary only andnot meant to be limiting.

An optional data communications link 53 provides feedback control fromthe power converters 46, 48, 50, 51 to the optional controller 54. Itshould be appreciated by those skilled in the art that thecommunications link 53 may be a physical hardwired connection as shown,or any other means of communication such as, but not limited to computernetworks, Ethernet, the internet, serial communications, a wirelessnetworks, radio, infrared or the like. When utilized in a auxiliary orbackup power application and electrical power at one of the loads 12,14, 16, 17 is lost from the utilityies 18, 20. The power converter 46,48, 50, 51 associated with the load 12, 14, 16, 17 suffering from thepower loss communicates with the generator controller 54 which initiatesthe generator 42 and provides electrical power to the auxiliarydistribution bus 52. Once the disconnect switch 30 associated with theload is opened, auxiliary electrical power is provided to the load. Thisauxiliary power will continue to provide power to the load until utilityservice 18, 20 is restored and disconnect switch 30 is closed. Whilethis example referred to a loss of power at a single load 12, 14, 16,17the operation is the same even if all four loads in the exemplaryembodiment lose utility power at the same time. It should also beappreciated that the use of four loads within a facility in theexemplary embodiment is for example purposes only and that thearrangement for providing auxiliary power can have more or less loadssupported by the generator 42 and is not intended to limit in the numberof loads that may be connected to the auxiliary distribution bus 44.

Another alternate embodiment power system 40a is shown in FIG. 4. Inthis embodiment, the generator 42 creates AC electrical power that istransmitted to a power converter 56 which converts the electricity fromalternating current (AC) to direct current (DC) prior to distributionover the auxiliary distribution bus 44. A second set of power converters58, 60, 62, 63 receive the DC electrical power from the distribution bus44 and convert the electrical power back into AC electricity having theappropriate characteristics for their respective loads 12, 14, 16, 17.Using a DC auxiliary distribution bus 44 may provide a number ofadvantages over that used in the prior art, for example, if multiplemixed type power sources, such as generator 42, solar array 64 andenergy storage 43, are used in parallel and connected to thedistribution bus 44, the use of DC electrical power eliminates issuesrelated to synchronization of the AC waveform between the respectivepower sources. Typically, the parallel power sources 43, 64 will requirea power conversion device 47, 63 if the power sources are producingelectricity at different power levels. In some applications this use ofthe DC distribution bus 44 may provide a more efficient means forcombining the different sources while minimizing additional or morecostly power conversion hardware.

In some applications, the use of the energy storage 43 in conjunctionwith the generator 32 may aid in maintaining power quality to the loads12, 14, 16, 17. Alternatively, power quality may only be critical at asingle load (e.g. a data center). In these applications, due to the costof providing storage for the whole distribution bus 44, it may bedesirable to connect the energy storage 106 to a single load 12 as shownin FIG. 8.

Another alternate embodiment for providing auxiliary electrical power isshown in FIG. 5. In this embodiment, a utility 18 provides power toloads 12, 14 through transformers 22, 24 respectively. A meter 28 anddisconnect switch 30 are located between the transformers and the loadsto provide electrical usage information to the utility and to allowisolation of the loads 12, 14. An optional auxiliary generator 42 isconnected to provide power to the service and associated load 12.

A line 72 electrically connected to a load 12 connects to a powerconverter 70 which in turn electrically connects to load 14. Thisarrangement allows for the transfer of power from a electrical circuitfeeding one of the loads 12, 14 to the other. The power converter 70 maybe of any type that can manage AC frequency, phase or voltage on eitherside of the converter and control the power flow at the same time. Inaddition the power converter 70 can control the reactive power on eachside independently making possible some amount of voltage control oneither side of the converter.

In the event that electrical power from the utility 18 to one of theloads 12, 14 is lost, the disconnect switch 30 for the load which lostpower is opened isolating the load from the utility. Electrical powerfrom the other load is then allowed to flow through power converter 70which converts the electricity to match the characteristics of the load.In the event that power is lost at both loads 12, 14 and the optionalgenerator 42 is installed, the generator may provide electrical power toboth loads 12, 14. This configuration provides a number of advantages incertain applications since it minimizes the number of connections andpower converters 70 that are required.

Another alternate embodiment is shown in FIG. 6. This embodiment shows asimilar configuration as that shown in FIG. 5 with each of the loads 12,14 being connected to separate and independent transformers 22, 24. Thisallows arrangement allows use for one electrical service as an auxiliarypower source to increase reliability and uptime of the loads 12, 14without the additional expense of a generator.

While the invention has been described with reference to a preferredembodiment, it will be understood by those skilled in the art thatvarious changes may be made and equivalents may be substituted forelements thereof without departing from the scope of the invention. Inaddition, any modifications may be made to adapt a particular situationor material to the teachings of the invention without departing from theessential scope thereof. Therefore, it is intended that the inventionnot be limited to the particular embodiment disclosed as the best modecontemplated for carrying out this invention.

1. A system for providing electrical power to a facility comprising: afirst electrical load electrically connected to a first electrical bus;a first transformer secondary electrically connected to said firstelectrical bus; a first power source electrically connected to saidfirst transformer secondary such that the power source may provide powerto said first electrical bus; a first power converter electricallyconnected between said first electrical bus and a second electrical bus;and, a second transformer secondary connected between said secondelectrical bus and said first power source; a second electrical loadelectrically connected to said second electrical bus; a second powersource electrically connected to said first electrical bus, wherein saidsecond power source is electrically asynchronous from said first powersource and said first and second electrical loads receive electricalpower in parallel from said first and second power sources.
 2. Thesystem for providing electrical power of claim 1 further comprising asecond power converter between said second electrical bus and said firstpower converter; and a third electrical bus electrically connectedbetween said first and second power converters.
 3. The system forproviding electrical power of claim 2 further comprising a second powersource electrically connected to said third electrical bus.
 4. Thesystem for providing electrical power of claim 1 wherein said firstpower source is a utility.
 5. The system for providing electrical powerof claim 4 wherein said second power source is a distributed powergeneration device.
 6. The system for providing electrical power of claim5 wherein said first power source is a utility.
 7. The system forproviding electrical power of claim 1 wherein said second transformersecondary is electrically connected between said second electrical busand a second power source.
 8. The system for providing electrical powerof claim 2 further comprising: at least three power converterselectrically connected said third electrical bus; at least threeelectrical loads, each electrical load being electrically connected toone of said at least three electrical loads; and, at least threetransformer secondaries, each of said transformer secondaries beingelectrically connected to one of said at least three electrical loadsbetween said at least three power converters and said at least threeelectrical loads.
 9. The system for providing electrical power of claim3 wherein said distributed power generation device is chosen from thegroup consisting of hydrocarbon fueled internal combustion engines,hydrogen internal combustion engines, external combustion engines,Stirling engines, microturbines, steam turbines, gas turbines,flywheels, wind turbines, photovoltaic arrays, batteries, fuel cells,capacitors, super-capacitors and ultracapacitors.
 10. The system forproviding electrical power of claim 1 further comprising an energystorage device electrically connected to said third electrical bus. 11.The system for providing electrical power of claim 10 further comprisinga third power converted electrically connected between said energystorage device and said third electrical bus.
 12. The system forproviding electrical power of claim 11 wherein said energy storagedevice is selected from a group of flywheels, batteries, fuel cells,capacitors, super-capacitors and ultracapacitors.
 13. A system forproviding electrical power to a facility comprising: a first electricalload; a first power source electrically connected to said first load; afirst transformer electrically connected between said first electricalload and said first power source; a second power source electricallyconnected to said load, wherein said second power source is asynchronousfrom said first power source, said connection being located between saidtransformer and said first electrical load; and, a first power converterelectrically connected to said first electrical load and said secondpower source wherein said first load receives electrical power inparallel from said first and second power sources.
 14. The system ofclaim 13 further comprising: a second electrical load electricallyconnected to said second power source and said power converter; and, asecond transformer electrically connected between said second powersource and said second electrical load.
 15. The system of claim 14further comprising a generator electrically connected between saidsecond electrical load and said second transformer.
 16. The system ofclaim 13 further comprising: a second electrical load; a third powersource electrically connected to said second load; a second transformerelectrically connected between said third power source and said secondelectrical load; a second power converter electrically connected to saidsecond electrical load and said second power source.
 17. The system ofclaim 16 wherein said second power source is an AC power source.
 18. Thesystem of claim 17 wherein said AC power source is a generator poweredby an internal combustion engine operated in variable speed generationmode.
 19. The system of claim 17 wherein said AC power source is an ACstorage device.
 20. The system of claim 19 wherein said AC storagedevice is a flywheel.
 21. The system of claim 16 further comprising athird power converter electrically connected to and between said secondpower source and said first and second power converters.
 22. The systemof claim 21 wherein said third power converter is a AC-DC type powerconverter and said first and second converters are a DC-AC typeinverter.
 23. The system of claim 22, wherein said second power sourceis a DC power source chosen from the group comprising photovoltaicarrays, fuel cells, ultracapacitors, and batteries.
 24. A system forproviding electrical power to a facility comprising: a plurality ofloads in the facility; a plurality of asynchronous power sources, eachproviding electrical power to one or more of said plurality of loads; atleast one generator electrically connected to said plurality of loadswherein said generator is asynchronous from said plurality ofasynchronous power sources; and, a plurality of power converters, eachof said plurality of power converters being electrically connectedbetween said at least one generator and one of the said plurality ofloads.
 25. The system of claim 24 wherein said at least one generator isan AC power source.
 26. The system of claim 25 wherein said AC power isgenerated by an internal combustion engine.
 27. The system of claim 25wherein wherein said AC power is generated by a wind turbine.
 28. Thesystem of claim 25 wherein said at least one generator is an AC storagedevice.
 30. The system of claim 27 wherein said AC storage device is aflywheel.
 31. The system of claim 24 wherein said at least one generatoris a DC power source.
 32. The system of claim 31 wherein said DC powersource is a photovoltaic array.
 33. The system of claim 31 wherein saidDC power source is an ultracapacitor.
 34. The system of claim 31 whereinsaid DC power source is a battery.
 35. The system of claim 25 whereinsaid power converter is a AC-AC inverter.
 36. The system of claim 31wherein said power converter is a DC-AC inverter.
 37. The system ofclaim 24 further comprising a second power converter, said second powerconverter being electrically connected between said at least onegenerator and each of said plurality of power converters.
 38. The systemof claim 26 wherein said second power converter is a AC-DC type powerconverter and each of said plurality of power converters is a DC-AC typeinverter.
 39. A system for providing heat and electrical powercomprising: a facility having at least a first electrical load; a firstpower source electrically connected to said first load; a firsttransformer electrically connected to said first power source and saidfirst load; a second power source electrically connected to said firstload between said first load and said first transformer, said secondpower source providing asynchronous electrical and thermal energy tosaid facility; a first power converter electrically connected to saidfirst load and said second power source, said first power converterautomatically adjusting said electrical power from said asynchronoussecond power source to proximately match the desired electricalcharacteristics of said first power source wherein said first electricalload receives electrical power in parallel from said first and secondpower source.
 40. The system of claim 39 wherein said facility includesa second load, said second load being electrically connected to saidsecond power source wherein said second load source receives electricalpower in parallel from said first and second power source.
 41. Thesystem of claim 40 further comprising a second power converterelectrically connected between said second load and said second powersource.
 42. The system of claim 41 wherein said facility includes athird load, said third load being electrically connected to said secondpower source wherein said third load receives electrical power inparallel from said first and second power source.
 43. The system ofclaim 42 further comprising a third power converter electricallyconnected between said third load and said second power source.
 44. Thesystem of claim 41 wherein said generator is powered be a hydrocarbonfueled internal combustion engine.
 45. A method for providing electricalpower to multiple electrical loads comprising: providing electricalpower from a utility grid to a first and second load; providingelectrical power from a first alternate asynchronous power source tosaid first and second load wherein said first and second load receiveelectrical power in parallel from said utility grid and said firstalternate power source; adjusting said electrical power to said firstload from said first alternate power source to be compatible with theelectrical characteristics of said first load and said utility grid;adjusting said electrical power to said second load from said firstalternate power source to be compatible with the electricalcharacteristics of said second load and said utility grid.
 46. Themethod of claim 45 further comprising the steps of: detecting a changein the electrical characteristics of electrical power provided by saidutility grid to said first load; and, adjusting the electrical power tosaid first load in response to said changed electrical characteristics.47. The method of claim 46 further comprising the step of adjusting theoutput of said first alternate asynchronous power source in response toa change in said utility grid.
 48. The method of claim 46 furthercomprising the step of adjusting the electrical power output of thefirst alternate asynchronous power source in response to a change insaid first load.
 49. The method of claim 47 further comprising the stepof converting alternating current generated by said first alternateasynchronous power source to direct current.
 50. The method of claim 49further comprising the step of converting the direct current back toalternating current before said power is adjusted to be compatible withthe electrical characteristics of said first load and said utility grid.51. The method of claim 46 further comprising the steps of: providingelectrical power from a second utility to a third load whereinelectrical power from said second utility is asynchronous with saidfirst utility; providing electrical power from said first alternateasynchronous power source to said third load; and, adjusting saidelectrical power to said third load from said first alternateasynchronous power source be compatible with the electricalcharacteristics of said third load and said second utility grid.